I Walk in the World to Love it

"I walk in the world to love it."

Mary Oliver, Long Life

Reading Mary Oliver is good for my soul. She stops me. When that happens I am clear, present and totally myself.

I wish it happened more often.

Every time an artist nudges me into a place where I can see again I tell myself that I want to stay there. But I don't. Instead of learning how to live deeply I walk right back into frenetic fray. I check the time, my phone, what I've accomplished lately, and the moment is lost.

Yet, it's this deeper life that I am convinced God is calling me into. For years I've tried to engage God in all things. But going forward I sense that this calling needs to be less wide and more deep; not in terms of complexity or abstraction, but in terms of love.

I want to love things more. I want to give more of myself to every encounter. I want to do that fearlessly. I think this is what I've been waiting to do.

Love takes time. It's the only thing that can slow me down in a lasting way.